Order Fixing June 12, 2023 as the Day on Which Sections 447 to 449 and 517 of the Budget Implementation Act, 2018, No. 2 Come into Force: SI/2023-4

Canada Gazette, Part II, Volume 157, Number 7

Registration
SI/2023-4 March 29, 2023

BUDGET IMPLEMENTATION ACT, 2018, NO. 2

Order Fixing June 12, 2023 as the Day on Which Sections 447 to 449 and 517 of the Budget Implementation Act, 2018, No. 2 Come into Force

P.C. 2023-184 March 9, 2023

Her Excellency the Governor General in Council, on the recommendation of the Minister of Labour, under subsection 534(4) of the Budget Implementation Act, 2018, No. 2, chapter 27 of the Statutes of Canada, 2018, fixes June 12, 2023 as the day on which sections 447 to 449 and 517 of that Act come into force.

EXPLANATORY NOTE

(This note is not part of the Order.)

Proposal

This Order will set June 12, 2023, as the day on which sections 447 to 449 and 517 of the Budget Implementation Act, 2018, No. 2 (BIA No. 2 2018), chapter 27 of the Statutes of Canada, 2018, come into force, pursuant to subsection 534(4) of that Act. These provisions will amend the Canada Labour Code (the Code).

Once in force, these amendments will make changes to Part III (Standard Hours, Wages, Vacations and Holidays) of the Code, to increase the minimum age of employment from 17 to 18 years of age. The Order will also bring into force a transitional provision to allow employees who are 17 years of age on the day of the coming into force of the legislative amendments to be considered as if they are 18 years of age so long as they remain employed by the same employer in the position they held on that day.

Objective

The objective of the Order is to bring into force amendments to increase the minimum age of employment from 17 to 18 years.

Background

The Code sets out the rights and responsibilities of employers and employees in federally regulated workplaces and is divided into four parts: Part I (Industrial Relations); Part II (Occupational Health and Safety); Part III; and Part IV (Administrative Monetary Penalties).

Part III of the Code establishes basic labour standards (e.g. payment of wages, protected leaves) for persons employed in federal Crown corporations and federally regulated private-sector industries, such as

Division II (Minimum Wages) of Part III of the Code currently stipulates that an employer may employ a person under 17 years of age only if it is in an occupation specified by regulation, and subject to regulatory conditions for employment in that occupation.

In 1973, Canada signed the International Labour Organization’s (ILO) C138 — Minimum Age Convention, 1973, which states that work that is likely to jeopardize health and safety should not be carried out by individuals who are younger than 18 years old. The ILO is a United Nations specialized agency that brings together representative employer and worker organizations, and governments, to develop policies and programs to promote decent work. Following urging from the ILO Committee of Experts in 2014, Canada ratified C138 in 2016.

In 2004, the Minister of Labour appointed Commissioner Harry Arthurs to review Part III of the Code. Included in the Federal Labour Standards Review was an examination of workers most in need of protection, which included children and young workers. The report noted that very few children were employed in the federal jurisdiction, and that compulsory education mandated by provinces and territories already effectively precludes employment by those under the age of 16. However, the report also recommended that Part III of the Code ban dangerous work for employees under the age of 18.

In order to ensure compliance with C138 and satisfy the recommendation of the Arthurs report, the Government of Canada brought forward amendments to Part III of the Code through the BIA No. 2 2018 to raise the minimum age referred to in section 179 and paragraph 181(f) of the Code from 17 to 18.

The Canada Labour Standards Regulations (CLSR) will also be amended to align its minimum age provisions with the BIA No. 2 2018 amendments to the Code.

Implications

This Order brings into force legislative amendments to the Code that will prevent federally regulated employers from hiring workers under 18 years for hazardous work.

Currently, section 179 stipulates that an employer may employ a person under the age of 17 only if it is an occupation specified by regulation, and subject to regulatory conditions for employment in that occupation. Paragraph 181(f) provides the authority for the Governor in Council to make the regulations for the purposes of section 179.

The new provisions will increase the referenced minimum age in section 179 and paragraph 181(f) from 17 to 18. It will also amend the language of the French version of paragraph 179(a) to fix a grammatical error and will expand the regulation-making authority in paragraph 181(f) to regulate classes of employees. In addition, the heading of Division II of Part III of the Code will be amended from “Minimum Wages” to “Minimum Wage and Age of Employment.”

In conjunction with the legislative amendments, the BIA No. 2 2018 also creates a transitional provision to allow employees who are 17 years of age on the day of the coming into force of the legislative amendments to be considered as if they are 18 years of age so long as they remain employed by the same employer in the position they held on that day.

The amendments to the Code, including the transitional provision, will be brought into force by this Order on June 12, 2023.

Consultation

As the intention of the BIA No. 2 2018 amendments were to support the 2016 ratification of C138, no consultations took place as part of the BIA No. 2 2018 process. The 2017–2018 Modern Labour Standards consultation process did not include consultations on the increase to the minimum age of employment from 17 to 18 years of age in Part III of the Code for the same reason.

Contact

Annic Plouffe
Director
Labour Standards and Wage Earner Protection Program
Department of Employment and Social Development
Labour Program
Email: EDSCDMTConsultationNTModernesConsultationModernLSWDESDC@labour-travail.gc.ca